When Rin Plays Cupid
by Ayamegusa
Summary: When Rin is asked to do a special task, will she be able to complete it?


Characters of Inuyasha (manga and anime) belong to Takahashi-san

* * *

When Rin Plays Cupid 

A young girl sat on the bank of a river, giggling at how the warm trickling waters would tickle her feet every now and then. Life was good for little Rin. Ever since she opened her eyes and saw the handsome face of her saviour for the very first time, saving her from the darkness of her previous life, her life had been nothing but wonderful. It was on that day she realised she had a family to belong to, and she would cherish that memory for the rest of her human life.

A cheeky smile grew on her face as she kicked the water to land on the toad-like youkai sitting next to her.

Jaken spluttered when the wave of water hit him smack in the face, "You stupid child! What did you do that for?!"

"You just looked so sad, Jaken-sama," Rin replied, a pout beginning to form on her young face. "Rin doesn't like it when Jaken-sama is sad, it makes Rin sad too."

"I don't care if you're sad, Rin," Jaken scoffed. "I do not know why Sesshoumaru-sama insists on keeping such a horrible creature like you—"

"Jaken."

The little youkai stiffened at the chilling sound of his Lord's voice. He started to shake, knowing all too well about the consequences of speaking foul of Rin.

"Y-y-yes-s-s…Sesshoumaru-sama?" He said, feeling his whole body trembling with impending doom. However, to his surprise, his Lord had ignored him as his eyes had diverted towards Rin.

"Rin, you are to stay with my brother for a while."

Jaken blinked at this and turned to Rin in confusion, waiting for her response.

"Really, can Rin ask why?"

"I must ask you to do something…very important for me."

Jaken saw how Rin's face lit up with child-like excitement, and it made the little youkai wonder about just what had conspired between the two, without his knowledge yet again.

He sighed miserably._Why am I always left out in such things?_

* * *

The mood was tense around the Inu-tachi as they marched on in search for the elusive Naraku, who had still chosen to remain hidden instead of facing them in battle. Inuyasha was in no doubt infuriated by the whole situation, but instead of verbally showing his disappointment, he had shut his mouth and refused to speak to the other members of the group. 

_I really don't want to disturb him. _Kagome could only look quietly at his back as he walked in front of her, fearing that by saying anything would be like trying to stop a moving bullet train at top speed.

"He doesn't look too happy." Shippou whispered the obvious to the miko. "An irritable guy like him needs a holiday."

"I can hear you, you know, runt. And I am _not _irritable." The hanyou was about to raise his fist ready to give the kitsune a piece of his mind, when his sensitive hearing picked up a strange sound, heading directly towards them. He then sniffed, his nose wrinkled, having picked up the second most unwanted scent he wanted to detect.

"Everyone, get the fuck out of here!!" He yelled out, just as a blinding light was heading towards him. And in the next instant, he felt the familiar clawed hand of his brother.

"Well…my _dear__otouto_, you look as irritable as ever." The tai-youkai smirked cruelly, while holding the hanyou high up in the air with his suffocating grip around his neck.

"I am _not_irritable," Inuyasha managed to choke out. "It just things haven't been going my way recently."

"Then perhaps I can offer you something to take your mind off things for a while." The tai-youkai replied coolly.

A look of confusion surfaced on the hanyou's face, not really knowing if he was beginning to hear things. "Offer me something? What are you scheming this time, you bastard?"

Sesshoumaru inclined his head to his right to indicate his brother to look down as well. "You will look after Rin while I am gone."

An unnatural silence fell around them, where every sound had become muted, from the singing of the birds, to the whistling of the winds between the trees.

"?" was all Inuyasha managed to say.

"You will look after Rin while I am gone." Sesshoumaru repeated, displeased that his brother had not given up the dreadful habit of making fun of him.

"I will look after Rin? You're joking right? Me, look after Rin? Whatever or whoever gave you that shitty idea?"

As much as Inuyasha tried to argue his way out of the babysitting job, it was becoming more and more apparent by each passing minute that he was winning a losing battle with his older brother; something he did not like at all. It was not as if he didn't like the girl, he just felt that he was not the right person capable enough to look after her. One would only have to look at Shippou to understand what Inuyasha had meant by that statement.

"Look…couldn't you ask someone else to look after her? Kagome might…" He was immediately interrupted by the tai-youkai.

"Definitely not, this is strictly between you and me. Besides…,"

It was then Inuyasha noticed how Sesshoumaru's eyes had become clouded over by some hidden emotion, and he felt something strike at his heart. Oh how he hated that feeling…

It was guilt.

The tai-youkai looked away from him, almost shameful for revealing too much of his lenient side, an appalling trait he had apparently inherited from his father. His father had always joked about how he could get anything he wanted whenever he had used 'that look', and now as if to ridicule his proper upbringing, it was the only thing that always worked with his brother. "I know I have never said this before, but you are my brother. I have not forgotten that. Thus, you are the only person I can trust with this task."

Inuyasha felt himself blinking rapidly in increasing bewilderment. Never in his life had he heard such nonsense being said by his brother, but actually hearing the words from the bastard's mouth was enough to make him very uneasy.

"Yes, I trust you." He heard Sesshoumaru say again quietly, yet this time there was a sting to his tone. "So you had better not shatter my delusion, all right, _Inuyasha_?"

Inuyasha gulped.

And so, Rin was left in the care of the hanyou, who was still wondering what he had done to deserve such a turn of fate. He felt someone tugging on his haori sleeve causing him to look down, and saw a pair of innocent big brown eyes looking back at him. A timid smile began to creep on his face.

_Well…maybe she won't be that bad…_

* * *

"Houshi-sama," Sango whispered. "Don't you think that that makes such an odd sight?" 

Sango and Miroku could only watch in amusement as Rin chatted happily away to Inuyasha, who she now dubbed as 'Inu-no oji-chan' with child-like admiration and adoration. Also, they had never seen the hanyou so quietly flustered by the immediate attentions that the girl was giving to him ever since Sesshoumaru had left her to his care. It certainly was a very amusing sight.

"For someone who is always grumpy, he's being very well behaved today, isn't he, Kagome-sama?" The houshi asked the miko of the future, only to hear her silently munching on her fish while looking at the hanyou and Rin with a strange interest. "Kagome-sama, is everything all right?" Again there was no answer, and so they decided to leave her alone for the moment.

After a while, Kagome and Sango decided it was the right time for a bath at the nearby onsen. Of course Miroku had insisted that he should be allowed to accompany them, in case there happened to be any dangerous youkai lurking about. This was heard on deaf ears as Sango and Kagome asked Rin instead.

Yet, for some strange reason, Rin had other things on her mind, and the little girl suddenly latched on to the hanyou screaming,

"No, no, no, Rin wants to have a bath with Inu-no oji-chan!!"

Five pairs of eyes shot towards Rin, then at Inuyasha who had paled considerably at the announcement, and could not speak at all. Kagome tried her best to coax the girl to let go and trying at the same time not to laugh at the hanyou's pale face. But her patience could only go so far, and now she found herself increasingly annoyed by Rin's absolute refusal to leave.

"But you can't have a bath with Inuyasha, he won't allow it."

"Rin doesn't care, Rin loves Inu-no oji-chan and Rin will stay with him forever and ever and ever and ever and ever…" She then poked her tongue at Kagome.

The miko stood still, her mouth gaping open in considerable shock. Never in her life had she felt such a strong emotion growing within her. Never before had someone provoked her to such an intense feeling. But this little girl in front of her did provoke her. How dare this _girl _walk into their lives and claim that the hanyou belonged to her? Kagome was angry, furious, and her aura made sure that everybody in the camp felt her rage as well. But, the miko was the type to remain calm in situations such as this one. She always remained composed, no matter how dire the situation was. Whether it be dealing with a youkai or Inuyasha's antics. _No one_ was able to ruffle her…

"Don't you dare touch him, you!" Kagome shouted using all the strength she could muster to grab the girl by her ankles, and trying to pull her off her hanyou.

Rin's grip around Inuyasha's neck tightened.

Kagome would not give in, especially to some pipsqueak who thought she could have anyone she wanted. "I am being reasonable with you, Rin-chan." The miko pulled harder. "You will _never_ have a bath with Inuyasha. For one thing, you have no family ties with him. For another, do you really think that _I _would let you? Never, do you understand? Only I can have a bathummnn…" She stopped herself before she could say anything that would likely cause embarrassment. "Anyway, let him go, get your own hanyou!"

Even so, little Rin did not let go of the hanyou. She only screamed in defiance, which rung right into his canine ears. Inuyasha, who was also looking a little blue in the face, could stand it no longer. With one intake of muffled air, he shouted at the top of his lungs. The enraged sound reverberated throughout the forest, scaring the birds and woodland animals from their slumber. Rin finally released him from her iron grip, and Inuyasha collapsed forward, thankful that the blessed air had finally returned to him in copious amounts.

The little girl looked worriedly at her new dog-uncle, "Inu-no oji-chan, are you alright?"

"Of course he's not alright; you nearly choked him to death!" Kagome snapped back at the girl.

Rin's lips trembled as her eyes drowned in big fat tears. She began to cry.

"Kagome," Inuyasha said in disbelief, "how could you? You made her cry. Rin's only a little girl. I'm surprised that you would pick fights with someone like her."

"Me?" Her hand sprang to her chest as if she had been stung by his words. "You're siding with her? She's the one who started it, hugging you all over like that."

"What are you talking about? Rin was just scared of you. You shouldn't have pulled her like that. You could have asked nicely, like you do with Shippou." Inuyasha made a glance to the kitsune, and Shippou found himself nodding in nervous agreement. "See? Even he agrees with me. You're always nice to him, why can't it be the same for her?"

Kagome fumed while trying to make an excuse, "Because, they are not the same."

"Not the same? What the hell do you mean by that? Of course they are the same."

"No, they're not."

"They are."

"They are not."

"Yes!"

"No!"

_Not this again,_Shippou thought in dismay as yet another one syllable, one word argument was being repeated by the hanyou and miko. Not one day passed by peacefully without their odd, often daily obsession for a verbal fight. If he didn't know any better, he would say that it was almost some bizarre form of romantic ritual, as often mentioned by Miroku. Well, at least he knew who was going to win this round.

However, fate had other ideas.

"No, they are not the same. Shippou is a lot cuter than Rin."

"He is not. Rin is ten times cuter than that brat. I mean, look at her; she's the very definition of cute. You want a synonym, how about 'adorable'?"

"That does it!" The aura around the miko flared with a fiery light, and Inuyasha had an inkling that if he did not shut his mouth soon, he was in for a 'sitting', literally. Not that he ever listened to his conscience anyway.

"I have had enough of this stupid argument. Say whatever you like. I'll just say that 'word' and I'll win this round for today, like always."

The hanyou growled. If the woman thought that she always had the upper hand whenever they fought, she had another thing coming. He would not be beaten so easily this time.

"Oh really?" his expression turned into a cool smirk. "Then go ahead and say your precious 'word'. I dare you!" He waited for her to respond. But what he got was only a blink of her eyes and the movement of her throat when she gulped. "Well? Say it! Just get it over with. Say it a hundred times if you want to. I don't care!"

However, Kagome found that she could not say the subjugation spell. Her mouth only opened and closed as if she were about to command it, yet nothing came out. His sudden determined expression had stunned her, his tone left her speechless, and now, she wasn't sure what to do. So apprehensively, she resorted to her other ultimate weapon.

"**Inuyasha, you baka!!!" **and with one last glare she ran out of the campsite, her hands covering her teary eyes.

A moment of silence passed before Sango stood up, her face in a frown. "That was uncalled for, Inuyasha."

"Keh! Like I fucking care," he too left in an angry huff.

"Well…" Miroku said, standing up to dust off his robes, "that was interesting. I'll go find our hanyou friend."

"And I'll find Kagome-chan." Sango replied, and then turned to Rin, who was displaying a very suspicious pout on her face, "Rin-chan, whatever you were planning, didn't work out too well tonight, eh?"

Rin didn't answer them until the pair had disappeared out of her sight. She then clicked her fingers in mild frustration, unhappy that her plan involving the miko and hanyou had not worked. _Oh bum. Next time I'll get them._

* * *

Inuyasha rested his head on the edges of the onsen, the feeling of uneasiness still on his mind. What the exact meaning of this uneasiness was still left unanswered. He was sure it wasn't the fight between himself and Kagome, if anything he had already forgotten what it was about. No, this feeling was different, like someone was forcing him to play some dangerous game. It was lucky that Inuyasha had the chance to escape. But who was trying to pull his strings? Who would be cruel enough? His thoughts then turned to the miko. Was it possible that she was in danger? He cursed himself for not knowing. 

Nevertheless there were other, more important things that came to mind at that moment.

"Is something wrong, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked.

"You know," Inuyasha started hesitantly, "when Rin said she wanted to have a bath with me?"

"Yes?"

"I couldn't help thinking that I wanted Kagome to say that."

"Inuyasha," Miroku began, happiness and pride sweeping throughout his body, "for the first time, you are talking like a real man. Come into my arms!"

The hanyou immediately grabbed Miroku by the neck, his face bright red. But whether it was from the heat of the water or from his embarrassment, he couldn't care less. He whispered in a very low voice, saying: "Fuck. Off. I never hug another man, especially when we're both naked. What if someone sees us, Sango for instance or worse, Kagome? Have you seen her recently? I've never seen her so angry before. What if I'd done something wrong? Something that even I don't know about?"

"Honestly, Inuyasha, sometimes you worry too much. I'm sure Kagome-sama is just going through _that _phase again." He nodded knowingly at the hanyou. "Besides, sinister things are happening without our knowledge, and we must be careful."

"What do you think it is?"

The houshi thought for a while, the warm waters of the onsen creating that air of calm needed for situations such as this one.

"I am thinking of Sesshoumaru."

"I knew it. That bastard, he's always making my life miserable."

"I am also thinking that Rin is a part of his plan."

"What, Rin?" Inuyasha pondered this new development.

"Just think about it. Sesshoumaru appears out of nowhere, but not to fight. Rin is with him. Why? Who knows? But she is there. And what does the tai-youkai ask; for _you_ to look after the shy and innocent little Rin. But what we found out was that the shy and innocent little Rin has instantly latched on to you, and only you. She adores you, showers you with idol affection. Yet when Kagome-sama tries to ask a simple and innocent request, Rin screams as if she is about to be murdered. Can you see where I'm getting at? I'll tell you what I think. I think that she is—"

* * *

"—trying to make you jealous," Sango said. 

Kagome simply stared at the slayer, her mouth gaping wide open. Sango's statement was said with such conviction, that the miko would not have thought the idea as being beyond ridiculous.

"I'm serious. Rin-chan is trying to make you jealous. And I think it has worked. I've never seen you this angry before." _Like an overprotective wife…_ Sango kept that comment to herself.

Kagome felt the heat rising up on her cheeks. "Don't be silly, Sango-chan. Rin-chan is not capable of such a terrible scheme. She just doesn't like me."

"Is that so?" Sango smiled. "Well, I'm only looking out for you. So don't come running to me when you find out what I said was true."

"I won't have to run to you, Sango-chan. You will see that Rin-chan is just a naive little girl who can't keep her hands off _my _hanyou. I bet she doesn't even know the meaning of 'make Kagome jealous'."

A soft rustling noise came from the bushes behind the two women. They jumped around, their eyes and weapons pointing at the moving leaves. They saw a shape coming towards them.

It was Rin, her face full of fright.

"Kagome-sama," Rin said, who looked as though she was about to cry. "I saw something back there, a huge youkai. I saw it sneaking around where inu-no oji-chan and Miroku-sama were having a bath. I'm scared, Kagome-sama, what if it tries to hurt them?"

Kagome's heart softened at that instant. It was obvious that Sango was exaggerating the whole situation about her being jealous of Rin's over doting behaviour towards Inuyasha. Here was an innocent, timid girl who needed someone similar to Sesshoumaru, so that she wouldn't feel so out of place with an entirely different group of people. It was only natural that she had chosen Inuyasha – Sesshoumaru's only blood brother – and so, it was only natural for the girl to be worried about him. She would have felt same way.

"Don't worry, Rin-chan." Kagome smiled, patting the girl on the shoulders. "Just show me where this youkai is, and I'll fight it off, okay?" At this Rin smiled the biggest smile Kagome had ever seen. The miko was happy that the misunderstanding between them had been quashed, and she allowed the little girl to grab on to her wrist and drag her to where the youkai supposedly was.

Sango followed a little behind them, worry etched on her face. _I have a bad feeling about this…_

* * *

"Are you sure, Miroku? Rin wouldn't do that, would she?" Inuyasha asked. 

"Don't you see, my friend? Rin has already tied you under with her charm. I have never seen you so timid. One day, _whoosh_, and you would never know it was her. No matter what age a woman is, she is always capable of such sharp cunning."

The hanyou's face formed into a grimace. He still could not believe that Sesshoumaru would have conspired with Rin to form such an elaborate, yet devious plan. But if what Miroku had said to him, was true, then Inuyasha would be very, very upset. Anyone who dared to make fun of him might find himself with one less limb. Or if he felt especially cruel, he would hack off the victim's opposable thumbs.

Suddenly, his canine ears twitched at the sounds of crunching grass, rapidly coming their way. He leapt out of the hot water and quickly reached for his Tessaiga, unsheathing the blade from its scabbard. He began to growl when he heard voices coming from behind the cover of the trees, yet he waited for them to make the first move.

"Over here, Rin-chan?" Kagome swiftly ran into the clearing, armed with her bow and arrows, ready to attack the youkai.

What she found instead was the onsen.

Inuyasha was there too…

…all naked and wet.

Kagome blinked.

Inuyasha blinked.

Kagome blinked again, and found her eyes unconsciously trailing down his wet and very well toned body.

Down and down her gaze went, until…

_Oh kami…_

Inuyasha followed Kagome's gaze as well until he saw her stop suddenly. He looked to where she was staring, and his eyes widened in shock. Too bad that his voice decided that now was the right time to speak.

"Oi, what are you looking at?"

From the sound of his gruff, if somewhat unexpectedly squeaky sounding voice, Kagome was rudely brought back to reality. Only now, reality included a complimentary, eternally burnt into her mind image of her hanyou in the nude. And what a sight it was. The miko blushed profusely at this realisation. But still her eyes stared.

Miroku, who was still in the onsen, was enjoying the little show unfolding in front of him. Now if only the woman slayer was here as well, his night would be complete.

"Kagome-sama, I don't suppose Sango would be behind you?" Miroku asked.

This was simply too much for an innocent and impressionable young lady to handle.

"**Inuyasha, you baka!!!" **the miko screamed, embarrassed that she had been caught staring, and by Miroku no less.

Inuyasha fumed at being, yet again, accused for no reason. And they started to argue again, the volume of their voices getting louder after each insult.

Rin stood there looking from the hanyou to the miko as they continued to bicker with their one word argument. This outcome was not what she had expected, and she began to wonder if all her plans would always turn out this way. Even though she and her Lord had planned everything so well, even to the last detail, every single scheme had fallen apart. Had her Lord been wrong all along about them? Or, were they as he described them: a very stubborn pair. A frown was about to spread on her face when she felt a small hand tapping on her shoulder.

"You know, I wouldn't have exactly done it like that." Shippou commented, also looking at the relentlessly arguing pair.

Rin looked at Shippou with a sudden curiosity in her eyes.

"I saw what you did, making Kagome run into Inuyasha like that. What were you thinking? That's not how you do it, not with them anyway. It would only make them argue, and then, they would never go anywhere fast. It has to be subtle."

"Subtle?"

The kitsune nodded and then beckoned the girl to come closer so that he could whisper into her ear.

* * *

The mood was tense the following day after last night's incident, which left the hanyou and miko with matching shades of red smothered on their faces. Kagome attempted to laugh but failed into a nervous giggle as she poked him in the shoulder. 

"You know, if it would help, I didn't see how big…I mean, how long…I mean…I mean…uh…I didn't see anything! Nothing! Nothing at all!!" by the time Kagome finished declaring that she saw nothing, her face was such a shade of red, that Inuyasha began to think that she was coming down with a fever.

"Are you alright, Kagome? Your face is all red again, more than it was last night—"

Kagome quickly covered his mouth to stop him from elaborating any further, and hissed into his ear, "I saw nothing, all right?"

Too bad Rin thought it was a good idea to add her own, cheerful comment.

"You know, if it would help, Rin saw everything."

Sango and Miroku watched on in poorly suppressed laughter as Kagome covered the little girl's mouth while repeating the phrase: "I didn't see anything!" while the girl repeatedly and happily retorted with: "Rin did, Rin did, Rin did!"

"I did warn Kagome-chan about Rin-chan…" Sango started.

"Yes, as Rin was planning to steal Tessaiga when he least expected it," finished Miroku.

"Steal Tessaiga?" she looked at him with a strange expression in her eyes. "What are you going on about? Isn't it obvious that Rin-chan is trying to make Kagome-chan jealous for some reason? Didn't you see her behaviour?"

Miroku sounded slightly skeptical of Sango's claim. "Are you sure? It clearly looked like a scenario where the cute girl suddenly appears, charms the hero, and then when he's asleep, she's off with the hero's only weapon. And then the cute girl gives the enchanted blade to the evil half-brother, or something similar to that."

Sango stared at the houshi, her mouth uncharacteristically hanging open from pure shock. Yet she did manage to say, "For a pervert, you don't really know how a woman's mind works, do you?"

The houshi pressed a hand to his chest as if he had been stung, "My dear Sango! How can you be so cruel? But if you must know, there is a difference between a young girl and a woman. Their minds and thinking are entirely different. I know. I'm very experienced in these things."

Sango ignored him as her eyes were already looking at something else. Something she had never seen before.

There in front of her was Inuyasha, in the middle walking with purposeful strides, with Kagome on one side and Rin on the other. They were all holding hands. And they looked as though they were enjoying it.

"They look like a family." Miroku said and then grabbed her hand. "It's only natural that we should look like one too."

The slayer blushed angrily and grabbed Shippou by the scuff of his neck. "Look out if he does anything, Shippou." And then placed the kitsune in such a way that now Miroku had to hold Shippou's hand while Sango held the other. She smirked when she heard the houshi sigh in defeat.

The hanyou grumbled under his breath in frustration. Ever since Rin had been under his…care, he had never seen Kagome act so angry around her, or him for that matter. It didn't matter much when they were only arguing amongst themselves, but with Rin in the picture, it was one big headache after another just trying to keep them apart from pulling each other's hair out. He wondered if this was what the miko felt every time he and Kouga fought over her. He blinked, and then shook his head.

Perhaps Shippou was right after all, he did need a holiday.

* * *

When Rin saw that her Lord had returned, she hugged her favourite dog-uncle around his leg and then waved goodbye. A little blush spread across her cheeks before she skipped away. 

"Can Rin come and visit again?"

The hanyou seemed to hesitate when he saw Kagome's dark look, "Yeah…sure…why not?"

Rin smiled, and then she was gone.

* * *

"Well?" Sesshoumaru asked, feigning indifference. 

"Well…uh…they argued a lot." Rin offered.

"And?"

"And…they held hands, but only at the very end. Shippou-chan suggested it actually." Rin tried again.

"Really?" this time the tai-youkai looked down at the little girl. "Is that all?"

The girl nodded.

"Oh."

Her lips trembled and her eyes filled with tears. "Is…Sesshoumaru-sama angry at Rin?"

For a whole second, the Lord's icy façade softened as he placed a hand on her head to comfort her.

"No. There is always tomorrow."

* * *

Inuyasha sighed happily, his back fully stretched out on the soft grass, his limbs loose in total relaxation, and with the sun gently warming his face and body. Kagome had gone back to her time to study for her exams, but she still managed to sneak in a kiss or two on his cheek. Shippou was with Miroku, learning the art of impersonation. Whatever the reason why the houshi was teaching Shippou such a skill was best left for Sango to find out. At least he knew he was left in peace. Only Kirara had decided to join him in a midday nap, her form curled up into a ball and her ear twitching because of a little yellow butterfly deciding to land on it. 

He let out a happy sigh. Life was good. Nothing could disturb him now.

"Hello, _otouto_."

"Piss off, you."

"Is that how you are going to greet me, Inuyasha?"

"I mean it, Sesshoumaru. Fuck off, I'm on holiday."

"Near an old, dried up well?" The tai-youkai looked into the mouth of the well, not seeing what was so fascinating about it.

Inuyasha blushed, mumbling, "It's a matter of taste."

"May I guess that your intended mate lives down that hole, and that you are waiting for her like a good little puppy?"

"What are you doing here anyway?" He bit back, not liking how his brother had already – if unintentionally – discovered the purpose of the well.

"You are my brother," Sesshoumaru began, "you know why I am here."

The hanyou sighed. "You want me to look after Rin."

"Yes."

Inuyasha sighed. _Not again…_

The End._  
_

* * *


End file.
